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AL-RAHI MARKING THE OUTSET OF THE MARIAN MONTH FROM HARISSA: TRAGEDY OF TRIPOLI'S SINKING BOAT SHOULD NOT BE A 'PASSING INCIDENT', SACRIFICING PEOPLE'S DEPOSITS NOT AN 'INEVITABLE FATE'

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NNA - Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, presided this morning over the feast Mass of "Our Lady of Lebanon" and the start of the Marian month in the Basilica of "Our Lady of Lebanon" in Harissa. In his homily, the Patriarch prayed to the Virgin Mary, the Lady of Lebanon, on her feast, "to protect our homeland and our people, preserve it as the land of faith and prayer, and sow peace in the hearts." "With the beginning of the Marian month, we raise our eyes and our hearts to our Mother, the Virgin Mary, the Lady of Lebanon, and with the Lebanese, we are looking for a new hope that prayers may bring to them, becoming their main longing as recovery plans and reform projects remain useless in an atmosphere of utmost hatred, and as the positive effect of parliamentary and presidential elections remains limited unless accompanied by the spirit of harmony and devotion, for no issue or crisis is resolved with grudges," the Patriarch said. "With kindness we resolve any disagreement even if deep, while with hatred we fail to resolve any disagreement even if superficial," al-Rahi affirmed.

Referring to the recent Tripoli boat tragic incident, the Patriarch said: "Images of the sinking boat disaster off Tripoli's shores are still vivid before our eyes, and the pain continues in our hearts as we see the death of children, youth, mothers and fathers, and we prayed for the souls of the fallen victims and for comfort and condolences to their families. It is not permissible for this tragedy to be a mere passing event, as some people try to turn its page just as they are trying to turn the page on the Beirut port blast and the explosion of the village of Al-Tleil in Akkar and others...

Lebanon to legalise hemp to prevent 'scourge' of marijuana

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By William Christou -- alaraby.o.uk -- Lebanon's parliament has passed a law allowing for the cultivation of hemp, the Minister of Agriculture, Abbas Hajj Hassan, said on Monday, though implementation mechanisms had yet to be specified. Hassan called hemp a "lifeline" for the Lebanese economy, saying that it has the potential to generate at least one billion US dollars in revenue. He added that the rules for its implementation were "being accelerated" by the cabinet. He further said that he hoped hemp production would keep "people and youth away from cultivating cannabis," which he deemed a "scourge."

Lebanon has long been famed for its production of cannabis and hash, particularly in the rugged Bekaa valley where sunshine and lack of state control provide perfect growing conditions. Lebanon is the biggest exporter of hashish in the region, and the fourth largest in the world according to the UN. Though the country legalised a form of medical marijuana to boost exports in 2020, regulations have yet to be set. The type of marijuana to be grown is also different from the cannabis that is normally grown in Lebanon, which contains much higher amounts of THC.

Grand Mufti motivates Sunni votes in Lebanon during Eid sermon

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By Najia Houssari -- arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian has used his Eid Al-Fitr sermon to warn Sunnis against the danger of abstaining from participating in the upcoming parliamentary elections in Lebanon on May 15. In an address held at Al-Amin Mosque in the heart of Beirut, he told a crowd that included several Sunni candidates that “abstaining is the magic formula for corrupt people to come to power.” His warning comes after international observers said that Sunnis abstaining from the vote will allow the “growing influence of Hezbollah and its allies from the Sunni sect, through the winning of the party’s loyalists or its allies.The lower the turnout to the elections, the easier it becomes for Hezbollah to win in the Sunni areas.”

Derian’s remarks came as Eid Al-Fitr was celebrated amid a crippling financial hardship that has plagued the whole country. President Michel Aoun tweeted his greetings on the Islamic holiday: “May those with good converge toward the supreme interest of the nation to reach safety.” He added: “Let this feast be an invitation to all to rise above immediate interests and realize national hopes and ambitions for the advancement and recovery of our homeland.” Prime Minister Najib Mikati wished for “Lebanon to recover as fast as possible through everyone’s efforts and positive cooperation, as this is the only choice.” He added: “The repetition of mistakes is a crime, and the worst crimes are the ones committed against the homeland, under the pretext of defending it.”

Derian, the highest authority in Sunni Islam in the country, spoke on Monday on the grounds that “the enthusiasm of Sunnis in voting is declining” due to “people’s disgust from the ruling class and the poverty it led to,” an official in Dar Al-Fatwa told Arab News. They added: “The ‘Future Movement’ and its loyalists are some of the people abstaining from voting, despite former Prime Minister Saad Hariri not demanding boycotting the elections. However, they related to his decision for the movement to abstain from participating in the elections, on the level of candidacy and endorsement of candidates. They decided to abstain from voting due to their lack of conviction in Hariri’s replacements.”

Patriarch Raï's appeal to the Lebanese: if you really love your country, participate en masse in the elections

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Harissa (Agenzia Fides) - If the Lebanese really want to protect their right to self-determination and distance the future of the country from the groups that intend to cause the collapse of Lebanon and erase its historical identity, they must participate massively in the legislative elections on 16 of May. The appeal comes from Lebanese Cardinal Béchara Boutros Raï, Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, who made these considerations on the relevance of the upcoming elections in his homily on Sunday, May 1, during the solemn Eucharistic liturgy presided over in the Shrine of Our Lady of Harissa.

In his homily, the Patriarch explained that the majority of Lebanese want to live in "a free, democratic and neutral Lebanon", as provided for by the Constitutional Charter and the national historical identity itself. For this reason, all Lebanese are called upon to take advantage of their right to vote also "to tell the world which Lebanon they want", and to make it clear to world and regional powers that the Lebanese people reject any geopolitical plan aimed at expropriating or mortgage the independence of the Lebanese nation. In the immediate term, the Patriarch has recalled the urgency of safeguarding an orderly and peaceful development of the last weeks of the electoral campaign, after the various incidents that in recent weeks have disturbed the fragile social order.

The Lebanese diaspora and the upcoming elections: What lessons from the 2018 voting

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percentage of votes by parties in 2018 -- source

Beirut blast families fight to keep ruined silos up until justice served

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By Dario Sabaghi -- al-monitor.com -- The blast at Beirut Port on Aug. 4, 2020, not only left more than 215 dead and 6,000 injured, but also changed the skyline of Lebanon's capital. For many Lebanese, the ruined grain silos are a memorial for the blast's victims and a testament to the negligence of their political establishment. The forensic investigation was halted for the fifth time in February 2022. No one has yet been held accountable almost two years after the explosion of 552 tonnes of ammonium nitrate. On April 14, 2022, the Lebanese government approved plans to demolish the grain silos.

Lebanese Information Minister Ziad Makari told the local media that the government had appointed the Council for Development and Reconstruction to oversee the demolition process. He did not specify a time frame. Makari said that the government made the decision based on a report by Lebanon's Khatib and Alami Engineering Company, which warned that the silos might collapse within months and that it would be too expensive to repair them. Culture Minister Mohamed Mortada told Reuters the government had decided to demolish the silos and build new ones based on a "purely economic assessment" of Lebanon's food security needs, including wheat storage.

Lebanon tells UNHCR that it can no longer tolerate the burden of Syrian refugees

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By Najia Houssari - arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: Lebanon has once again voiced its concerns about Syrian refugees, stating that the country can no longer tolerate some of their actions. Lebanese Minister of Labor Mustafa Bayram said: “Lebanon is no longer able to play policeman for other countries.” Prime Minister Najib Mikati chaired a meeting of the ministerial committee in charge of discussing the issue of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, during which Bayram said: “The Lebanese state is no longer able to handle this matter.” Bayram also stressed after the meeting that Lebanon is left alone, and the state cannot stand to cost. “We no longer have diesel boats to monitor the sea, and the UN and UNHCR must step up and bear their responsibilities. The Lebanese are queuing at banks and ATMs, while others receive direct aid in dollars. They share our water, electricity and resources while we do not get anything. Many institutions, international organizations and countries are concluding agreements with Lebanese NGOs and paying them in dollars without going through the state, and frankly, this uncontrolled situation is no longer acceptable,” he said.

Hector Hajjar, minister of social affairs, met Ayaki Ito, representative of the UNHCR office in Lebanon, and conveyed the Lebanese government’s official position regarding Syrian refugees. Hajjar’s office said he informed Ito that the Lebanese state is committed to the principle of not forcing refugees to return to their country of origin, but the situation is no longer tolerable and the state is no longer able to bear the cost of maintaining security in the refugee camps and the areas in which refugees have settled. Hajjar said: “The Lebanese state has always received less aid than the needs declared annually, despite the fact that 35 percent of the population is made up of displaced persons and refugees. According to reports, 82 percent of the Lebanese suffer from multidimensional poverty. The Lebanese state has incurred huge losses over the years, due to the displaced people benefiting from the state’s subsidies on basic commodities such as medicine, bread, and fuel, in addition to prison overcrowding and the resulting burdens, not to mention the security chaos and competition in the labor market.”